Tesla Model X: Here It Is

At a private event just a short way down the road from its Fremont, California, factory, Tesla Motors introduced its electric crossover, the Model X. It wasn't just an unveiling, either—the electric carmaker used the debut to deliver production-spec vehicles to its very first Model X buyers.

The Model X debut gave us our first look at some of the car's most notable features, including some surprise aspects of the vehicle that were heretofore unknown. For example, the panoramic windshield, which stretches from the base of the hood all the way up to the car's B-pillar, with a deep tinted gradient beginning at what would be the top edge of a normal windshield and extending back over the driver and front passenger's heads.

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Or the "monopost" second-row seats, each mounted to the floor with a single, central stanchion rather than the traditional dual slider tracks. This opens up under-seat storage space for purses, backpacks, or other paraphernalia, to an extent that's not available in any other SUV, crossover, or minivan that comes to mind.

And then there's those back doors: double-hinged, automated by multiple actuators, and fitted with a plethora of sensors to prevent errant door dings or pinched flesh. There's enough technology in those back doors to warrant a separate post, which we'll be doing, but for now know this: Tesla's engineers came up with solutions for seemingly every potential flaw pointed out by internet commenters, from low garage ceilings to rollover crashes to the question of how, exactly, you install a roof rack.

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The models on display were all Founder or Signature Editions—in other words, top-spec vehicles earmarked for the very first customers who put down reservations. Some of these customers have been awaiting their Model X for years—which is why tonight's event served as both debut and delivery.

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As of right now, the Model S will come in two driveline options: The 90D (as in, 90 kWh battery, Dual-motor all-wheel drive) and the performance-tuned P90D. The former was just rated at 257 miles of range by the EPA, while the latter rings in at a slightly lesser 250 miles.

I had the chance to take a very brief, closed-course test drive in a Model X P90D—Elon Musk's very own vehicle, as it turned out, a menacing black model with matte black wheels and an opulent white interior. As far as cornering goes, the initial feeling is completely bizarre—with a crossover's high seating position and the exceedingly low center of gravity afforded by Tesla's floor-mounted battery pack, the Model X corners with far more aplomb than you expect from a family hauler. There's essentially no body roll, and the overall sensation is like driving in a well-planted sports sedan—one where you're inexplicably seated a foot higher than usual.

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And of course, I tried out Ludicrous Mode. Tesla claims a 0-60 time of 3.2 seconds when that button is pushed, and I believe it. This thing just rockets away from a stop, with a chest-squeezing run from zero to 30 that, again, feels odd as hell when experienced in a crossover. Ludicrous Mode is an optional upgrade to the P90D, without which you'll have to survive with a 0-60 sprint of 3.8 seconds, neck-and-neck with the BMW X5 M. Non-P models do 0-60 in 4.8 seconds, a relative lifetime when compared to the P variants.

We can't wait to actually test this thing on a more demanding course than Tesla's industrial park driving loop.